Metallic Taste
by crazeENnes
Summary: AU. Arthur Kirkland was a new doctor at WW Hospital, Behavioral Unit. Behavioral Unit was a nice euphemism for the ward of the mentally unfit individuals of society. The doctor's first case was one of the most problematic patients, Lovino Vargas. However, as the psychiatrist tries to "fix" the patient, he inadvertently discovers a bigger scheme at the sidelines.
1. Chapter 1

Title: METALLIC TASTE

Rating: Mature

Pairing: England x S. Italy

Summary: AU. Arthur Kirkland was a new doctor at WW Hospital, Behavioral Unit. Behavioral Unit was a nice euphemism for the ward of the mentally unfit individuals of society. The doctor's first case was one of the most problematic patients, Lovino Vargas.

_The First Taste_

Arthur Kirkland, a young English bachelor who chose to become a psychiatrist. As of the moment, he was heading to the annex of WW Hospital. The annex was the Behavioral Unit.

The area was a good ten miles away from the main hospital and was an isolated place of about 32 acres. Majority of the area was filled with lush greenery.

'_A classic mental institution…_' The Brit thought as he saw the metal gates swing open when the identities of Arthur and the driver were confirmed.

Five days ago, Arthur Kirkland had received the approval for his residency at the Behavioral Unit. The doctor had taken up psychiatry as his specialization. After a year of general practice residency at the main hospital, he was granted the residency at the Behavioral Unit.

The driver stepped on the brakes once it had pulled over the curve. "We have arrived sir."

"Thank you." Arthur said and disembarked on the vehicle.

A grovel path laid beneath the man and he trudged to the double door entrance. There was an orderly waiting with a slightly annoyed face.

"Yo, doctor. Sorry if none of the other doctors could see to you as of the moment." The orderly said with a mocking voice. "They said that they are kind of tight right now dealing with a patient. I'm in-charge of showing you to your office."

The orderly had a platinum or white hair depending on the lighting. As they walked further down the hallway of the first floor, Arthur had noticed something peculiar. In contrast to the other orderlies who had the normal cut for the sleeves, he wore long sleeves. The new doctor had also noticed the crimson-like shade of the man's eyes.

'_Is he an albino?_' Arthur deduced from the physical appearance of the orderly and the fact that he was wearing long sleeves when in fact it was quite humid that particular day. '_Well whatever…_'

The Brit wanted to shake off the possibility of the other being an albino but as an individual he was interested because it was his first time to meet someone with the condition first hand.

'_It's not an everyday occurrence that you get to meet an albino._'

Thoughts aside, Arthur took note of the inner architecture of the building. The first floor was barren of any presence of patients. Apparently, the entire floor was the receiving area for the patients' visitors and it also served as the offices of doctors.

A gated stairway connected the first floor to the second floor. The gate could only be opened by keycards and authorized fingerprint scanner.

"Generally, most of the patients are, uh, behaved but the fingerprint scanner was added as a precaution." The orderly explained.

"Precaution?" Arthur asked.

"There was a time when one of the patients had gotten hold of the keycard and almost escaped the place. Quite the… troublesome person."

Arthur noticed that the orderly was carefully choosing his words.

"This is your office. Good day." Without any words left to say, the orderly had left Arthur in front of the door that had his plaque.

_Arthur Kirkland, M.D._

_Child and Adolescent Psychiatry_

Arthur sighed and twisted the knob. With a _clicking _sound, the door opened. The room was barren of any possession. There was not yet a table, chair, bookshelf or any fixture. For the Briton, it felt like the ward was impoverished.

'_Perhaps they really are busy._' Another sigh escaped the lips of the doctor. '_All right, my first order of business is to get this room furnished._'

Arthur Kirkland then made his way outside of the office. He walked around the hallway and began to read the different sub-specialties of the psychiatrists in the Behavioral Unit. The sub-specialties were much of an assortment that it covered a wide spectrum; the place had screamed that it had the best specialists when it came to the human mind.

'_Probably the best place in the world…_'

The doctor made his way to the reception area and to his amazement the woman assigned had a much panicked expression. When the receptionist saw Arthur she gave a curt nod and explained the situation.

"Sir, it seems that patient Vargas is acting out again. The doctors are occupied with subduing him. The usual sedatives did not have an effect on him. Increasing the dosage would create a counter-reaction with his medications…"

Arthur took a gulp. '_Is this the same patient that the orderly talked about earlier?_'

"Pardon my pompousness sir but the other doctors are requesting for your presence." The receptionist ducked for a moment and took out a card key. The woman then handed it over to the doctor. "This is for a temporary usage sir. When the matter settles down, you will have your own card."

"Ah, yes. Thank you." Arthur said, unsure how to reply to the woman. The doctor then made slashed the card through the metallic gate. With a _beep_ it had recognized the code inscribed in the plastic item and gave him access to the second floor.

What Arthur saw was something beyond his imagination. The hallways were a mess. The other patients were shut in their respective rooms for their own safety.

"Please calm down Mr. Vargas. We can talk this out like adults. You're already an adult, correct?" One of the doctors tried to approach a young man whose eyes were seething to everyone and everything within his field of vision.

"Talk out. Pfft! Bastards, that's what you said last time before Feliciano's visit. In the end you didn't let me meet him." The patient growled at the doctor.

Arthur, who was several meters away, watched the chaos before him. It was as if a typhoon had passed and wrecked the area. The orderlies were prepared with the necessary medications to subdue the patient but the doctors had not yet given the go-signal.

"Lovino, listen, we are doing this for your own good. You're a good child right?" Another doctor called out.

"Why the fuck do you say I am _good?_" There was so much emphasis on the word _good_ that Arthur inwardly cringed. It felt like the patient loathe the very word. Or it could be that he associated the word with something untoward.

To Arthur amazement, the patient had stopped any movement on his part. Instead, the young man had stood still. The first doctor, who first called out, sent silent signals to subdue the young patient.

The wails that echoed had ceased and there was dead silence hanging in the atmosphere.

"Please bring Mr. Vargas to the infirmary and have those wounds healed." The doctor who had just spoken earlier told the albino orderly that Arthur recognized.

"Yes sir." The albino orderly motioned another person who carried a stretcher to come closer. Both of them worked hand-in-hand and placed the unconscious patient on the stretcher and made their way away from the wreck.

"Ah, Dr. Kirkland. We apologize for being unable to properly greet you. It seems that you came at the wrong moment…" The doctor shifted his stance and faced the Briton. "I'm Dr. Berwarld Oxenstierna, head of the Behavioral Unit."

"This is Dr. Eduard von Brock. In-charge of the psychotherapy." Dr. Oxenstierna pointed out to the other man beside him.

"You came at a rather peculiar time, so we were quite unprepared." Dr. von Brock said with a goofy grin.

"If you'll excuse me, I will make sure that the other patients have not been… terribly affected by Mr. Vargas' outburst. Mr. von Brock, please accompany and show him around the place." Dr. Oxenstierna left both men, his white coat swishing along with his movements.

"You can call me Eduard." Dr. von Brock, rather Eduard, introduced himself once again. The doctor pushed his glasses upwards. "I think that Gilbert had given you the rundown about the place's blueprints."

"Gilbert?" Arthur gave a quizzical look.

"Ah, I see, he didn't introduce himself. Gilbert Beilschmidt was the orderly earlier who had waited for you by the entrance." Eduard explained. "The furniture of your office should arrive by this afternoon. If it weren't for the fiasco earlier, we could have told the delivery to have it sent earlier."

"It's alright." Arthur reassured. '_It really seems that this Mr. Vargas is very problematic…_'

Both men had gone back down the first floor. Eduard had acquainted Arthur with the other doctors who were mostly preoccupied with the cases they were currently handling. Despite the piles of papers on their desks, the doctors had acknowledged the presence and arrival of Arthur.

"Well, the place is quite understaffed. We are happy that you decided to have your residency here." Eduard said.

"Ah, well…" Arthur had closed his mouth. There were no words that formulated in his head to give a proper reply.

Eduard just smiled. The Brit followed the other doctor to his office. Compared to the other offices that he had just entered, it was in a better state. Most of the papers were neatly piled on another desk, with labels pasted at eyes' level on the wall.

"Dr. Oxenstierna was supposed to give this to you but he is quite in a cinch, so I'll give this to you." The psychotherapist handed the keycard embellished with the name _Arthur Kirkland_. "We can have the fingerprint scanning tomorrow. Hopefully things would settle by then."

Arthur nodded and placed the card inside one of his pockets.

"Well, I think that this is all for the day." Eduard smiled and the Brit could only nod then left the room.

Arthur Kirkland had thought that his day was rather, peculiar. At the front desk, he returned the keycard that was given to him earlier. The woman had also called for a taxi to pick the doctor.

The mind of the doctor reeled back to the scene of the second floor of the WW Hospital Behavioral Unit. The patient known as _Lovino Vargas_ had begun to intrigue him. The fellow looked quite young, around seventeen or eighteen years-old.

The following day, when Arthur had returned back for his official first day, he did not imagine that he would be assigned to _Lovino Vargas_.

"Although he is a troubled patient, during his _sane moments, _he is the most normal among the other patients. He only acts out during certain days; particularly if he would be administered with his stronger medications." Dr. Oxenstierna explained. "As I read through your CV, you have also worked on a similar case before."

"Ah… yes," Arthur replied with reluctance to continue further with the topic.

"Anyhow, this sounds a little late but welcome to the Behavioral Unit of WW Hospital." The other man said then left the office of the Brit.

Compared to yesterday, the office had already been filled with the necessary furniture. Even though it was his first day, the table had already been massed with papers. All the papers contained the medical history of Lovino Vargas.

**TBC**

A/N: Yes, I know I shouldn't be posting another multi-chapter when I have an unfinished one. But this one wouldn't leave me alone. Please do type and tell me about what you think. Reviews really make any author happy. Pretty please type a review? OK? Yey! :*


	2. Chapter 2

_The Second Taste_

Arthur Kirkland was having his first _official_ visit to his patient, Lovino Vargas.

The profile that was given to him had stated that the young man was twenty-one years of age. Lovino had been admitted to the place just a few months before he had turned eighteen. For the past three years, the patient didn't have any interaction from someone outside of the institution.

'_The only exception was his younger brother who would occasionally visit._' Arthur thought before he entered the room.

When the doctor had entered the room, it did not have a trace of disorder. There was a single bed with white linen, a closet, a wooden table and chair. It was a very minimalistic bedroom.

"So you're my new doctor?" A condescending voice greeted Arthur. The Brit had then pulled over the chair and sat directly across the patient. The young man was sitting cross-legged on his bed.

Arthur decided not to take any notice of the provocation thrown at him. Rather, he was more drawn to the dark circles that were beneath the eyes of the patient.

"I'm Arthur Kirkland, Lovino. You can call me Arthur." The doctor said with utmost calmness.

The Brit expected some civil reply from the patient but those expectations were thrown out of the window. Lovino had only raised a finger at him.

"Fuck you bastard. If you're just going to give me more of those rotten medicines then do it. I don't give a shit about who you are and what you do."

Hazel eyes locked-on to emerald ones.

Arthur had noticed that there was only pure hatred within the depths of the patient's hazel orbs.

"If you behave properly, you do know you won't have to take any medicine right?" Arthur said.

"Hmph," Lovino crossed his arms. "You just say the same thing as everyone else."

"Everyone else?" Arthur probed.

"Yeah, the exact same words like everyone else." Lovino averted his eyes and looked at the small crucifix that lay on the table.

"Like who?" Arthur queried.

"Just shut up! I don't need you or whoever. You could have just left me to die in that garbage heap! No one would have cared!" The patient then stood up on the bed and glared at the doctor.

"I don't think so. Your younger brother would really be sad…" Arthur did not meet the glare thrown at him and remained still on his chair.

"Don't bring up Feliciano. You don't even know him!" Lovino yelled even more.

"…."

The intense conversation between the two had ended in an awkward silence.

According to Lovino's profile, the only immediate family the patient had was his younger brother, Feliciano Vargas. The younger Vargas was still a high school student. Occasionally, he would visit his older brother. The visits were more often during vacations.

"I may not know him but," Arthur spoke quietly. "Family will always be there for you."

"Yeah, yeah…" Lovino said dismissively and returned back to his sitting position.

"I'll visit you again this afternoon after your therapy with Ed—Dr. von Brock." Arthur then stood up and left the room.

The doctor walked past the corridors and returned to the confines of his office. The conversation with Dr. Oxenstierna replayed back in his mind.

"_Although he is a troubled patient, during his sane moments, he is the most normal among the other patients. He only acts out during certain days; particularly if he would be administered with his stronger medications." Dr. Oxenstierna explained. "As I read through your CV, you have also worked on a similar case before."_

'… _similar case… huh?_' Arthur slumped on his chair.

Before Arthur's residency at the Behavioral Unit, there was a similar man like Lovino Vargas.

To be specific, it was the case that was handed to him was what was similar as pointed out by Dr. Oxenstierna. Due to the broad spectrum of the symptoms, it was difficult to particularly pinpoint or diagnose the illness then create a prognosis.

'_Oh!_' Arthur's mind lit up as he recalled something else about that patient. '_They were both confined at a young age._'

The previous patient that Arthur worked with was older than him but the profile had stated he had been admitted at the age of fifteen. It was not _admitted _per se but rather that patient was going in-and-out of the hospital.

'_He would show signs of improvement and healing for several months. When he would be discharged, some weeks later, he would return back._' Arthur call to mind the notes placed in that profile.

Before that patient had turned eighteen, his family had decided to permanently place him inside the institution.

It had really hit Arthur that Lovino and _that patient_ were similar in more ways than one.

. . .

Days had passed by.

Arthur Kirkland had already met everyone who worked in the unit from the staff who were in-charge of the daily operations to the doctors who oversaw the patients. For the Brit, he was getting used to the new lifestyle.

There was an exception.

What the Brit could not yet assimilate into his life was his interactions with Lovino.

By far, there were no hysterical episodes that presented. The crude language of Lovino was often considered by Arthur as a symptom but then as he looked at the previous records, it was dismissed by his previous psychiatrist.

'_At first, I had found the language usage quite alarming. Further interactions had substantiated that it was not a symptom or such. Rather, I can say that it was his way of coping within the new environment. I had a talk with the younger brother, Feliciano Vargas, and he had said that his older brother was prone to crude language usage. So, it may not really be a coping mechanism. From here on are just my speculations. It could possibly be his environment that had made him speak the way he is. _'

_January 23, Dr. Antonio Fernandez Carriedo_

Arthur sighed and placed down the profile. The previous psychiatrist, Dr. Antonio Fernandez Carriedo, had worked with Lovino's case until his recent resignation. The Brit appreciated the notes that were left behind because of how detailed they were. As much as there was appreciation, there was also some doubt forming within Arthur.

He really wants to find the cure for Lovino but even the previous psychiatrist who had been working on a diagnosis and prognosis was not able to come up with one.

'_I…_'

"Take it one step at a time Kirkland." Arthur murmured to himself. The doctor had Sundays as his rest day unless there would be some emergency in the hospital, he would have to stay.

During one Sunday, instead of resting his mind, he went through the profile of Lovino back to the very beginning of his admittance to the institution.

"I've got the whole day to read the information..." Arthur sighed.


	3. Chapter 3

_An Unpleasant Aftertaste_

When it was in middle of December Feliciano Vargas had been frequently visiting Lovino Vargas. Every time during his visit, there was a lively chatter in the visiting area.

To the younger Vargas, he never had fully understood the gist of why his older brother had been admitted to the Behavioral Unit. However if it was for the sake of curing his older brother, he agreed to do whatever means it would be necessary.

However, once in a while he wondered whether he made the correct decision.

Dr. Oxenstierna had always reassured Feliciano that Lovino would get better in time.

"_Rest assured Mr. Vargas, your older brother is receiving the best care we give. Especially that the new psychiatrist that is assigned to him had a similar case. He may be able to bridge back Lovino to reality._" The doctor said.

What Feliciano was sure about was the reason Lovino was admitted. The tipping point was when the older brother had a violent attack and had almost killed the younger brother. The Social Services had then immediately taken intermediary measures.

Feliciano had put it past him. With a smile on his face, he went to the visiting area and there he saw his older brother with a scowl on his face. "What took you so long idiot?"

Feliciano laughed. His older brother had a peculiar way of saying, "_I missed you._"

"I'm sorry Fratello. I missed you a lot!"

The siblings were then engaged in a conversation for the entire duration of the visit which had amounted to two hours. Although the visiting hours had not been over, Feliciano had left earlier due to an appointment.

"Don't forget to visit idiot."

"I will not." Feliciano smiled and then hugged his older brother after giving a kiss on his cheeks.

There was not a day when Feliciano did not think about his older brother.

It was impossible not to do so because…

_Feliciano was Lovino._

_Lovino was Feliciano._

Arthur Kirkland sighed. It had been 48 hours since he had last slept. The profile that was written by Dr. Fernandez was riddled with too many footnotes. It took a long time to piece together the small writings into something coherent.

"_As I had suspected_, _Lovino Vargas was the child from the abandoned experiment some decades ago. Before the laboratory had shut down, they released experiment "Romano" then renamed Lovino Vargas. However, when he had begun self-mutilation, he was brought to this Behavioral Unit. He claimed that he had a younger brother that he had almost killed."_

The English doctor was shocked at his discovery. Arthur was not sure whether he should confront Dr. Oxenstierna about it. He had only been working here for six months and during his residency, he had only handled the case of _Lovino Vargas_.

'_Maybe I should because I am handling his case after all._' Arthur thought.

During the psychiatrist's duty at the ward, his eyes were dropping occasionally. Caffeine did not even help him with his situation.

Instead of the usual one hour session with Lovino, it was cut short to 50 minutes. It was unprofessional but it was a better than being half-assed with his job.

"Guess you're getting tired of me already?" Lovino spoke with his gaze averted and Arthur was sure that there was hurt in the tone of his voice.

"I can still stay here but you would not want to speak to me." Arthur said calmly, trying to catch the gaze of the Italian.

The patient huffed and crossed his arms. "Fine, I will tell you who I really am. But you won't like it."

Arthur then returned back to his usual seat and listened intently to what Lovino was saying.

* * *

There was only stillness in the room. The smell of disinfectant prevailed inside while men and women wearing white coats with masks on their faces stood still. Today, it was the day when their research might come into fruition. Or breed another failure. Closely, everyone watched.

In this laboratory, it was like no other in the world. The experiments were beyond any form of morality set about by humans; there were no boundaries that chained what was going inside. Currently, what most of the scientists were experimenting at was the creation of a human being outside of a human's womb. A special incubator has been made with a gene pool that was also created by scientist. What they were aiming at was creating the "perfect human."

Right now, it was already the ninth month of the fetus. The vital signs were stable, the baby was expected to wake-up at the moment, make its first cry. However, none of what they were expecting was happening. The scientists held their breath as the chief of the team approached the little creature and checking out for any signs of abnormality that was not detected.

Seconds filled with tension covered the place. Then what they had waited for finally happened, the baby had then made its first cry. Everyone in the room was filled with happiness. There were mixed reasons for their happiness but they were overwhelmed with joy that it had worked.

Ten months later, the baby who was now a toddler, lived inside the mass cage of the laboratory. For the young toddler, he was contented with what interactions he had from the others. Each day, he was given puzzles to be solved. His food was strictly monitored. Even the amount and what people said to him were carefully calculated. All of this was for the sake of the creation of a "perfect human."

Two years later, the toddler was able to grasp what his surroundings were. He was not anymore contented by being locked inside the big cage; he talked to the people, at first pleading to walk outside. Then he demanded to be released. This turn of events shocked those who were in-charge of the boy. They recorded down every detail of development that was happening to the little boy.

It was also around this time that the scientists had decided to give the boy a younger brother. The younger brother will be subjected to the exact same conditions, in other words a perfect replication.

The little boy, who was already three years-old, was confused why everyone around him was excitable. His "grandpa," the head of the research team, had told him that he would be having a younger brother.

"_What's that?_"

"_No Romano, you do not say 'what' but you say 'who' when you describe another human._"

"_I'm sorry grandpa._"

The first test subject was named _Romano_, in honor of the head scientist, _Romulus Vargas,_ who had devised the entirety of the experiment. The initial experiments were from simpler life-forms like rats. At that time, it had met several dead-end and several revisions were made. When it had succeeded, the research team had then made a proposition to the board of directors that they would try the experiment with human genetics.

Five years had passed by since then. Around that time, Romano had met _his younger brother _who was three years old and he was eight. It was only fleeting encounter, both children were introduced to one another and then were returned back to their respective areas. After then, they had never chance upon one another.

When Romano was fifteen, he had then wondered about his _younger brother_ and his _grandfather_. During one of his routine check-ups, Romano asked about the two individuals.

"_He was taking a vacation with Feliciano…_"

"_Feliciano, what's that?_"

"_It's not what but who Romano. Didn't y our grandfather tell you that when you-_"

"_Yeah, yeah, whatever._"

The entire team was thankful that _Romano _succeeded the initial phase of the experiment. The succeeding years were spent on testing his cognitive and motor skills side by side. The intelligence tests had proven that for _Romano's _age bracket, he was superior. However, his motor coordination was compromised. A regimen had then been made to alleviate the compromised system. In so far, the direction of the progress was as expected.

However, there was a problem with the other subject. The replication, _Feliciano_, had not met the standards that Lovino had attained despite the exact genetic match. In all the fields that the small child was tested, he was average and for the research team, average was not good. The only worthwhile thing about the second subject was that it had proved to a certain degree that human creation through genetic manipulation was possible.

"_We are not God after all. Romano might just have been sheer luck or maybe I can say a miracle._" Romulus said as he had written down his personal notes about the entire research process. "_They are planning on disposing Feliciano; I had objected about the disposal because I think that the potential of Feliciano has not yet been tapped. The genetic expression might have been different than Romano's but it does not change the fact that this boy is a human being. He too deserves to live his life._"

That was the last entry of the personal journal of the scientist.

The following day, Romulus had filed a resignation letter and left the entire facility. Since then, there had been no news about what had happened to the old man. It was as if he had disappeared into thin air.

One week later, the laboratory had shut down its operations. The disposal of Feliciano and Romano was a difficult decision. They were haphazardly thrown into societal streets and both had to fend for themselves.

What they did not know was that only one of them had been physically thrown out into the streets and that was Feliciano's body. _Romano's _consciousness had been infused with Feliciano who was technically _average_ and this meant that there were no problems with his motor skills which Romano had possessed.

* * *

"That's the whole fucking story. Or as Antonio had told me." Lovino had his gaze cast to the floor as he said the last parts of his sentence heavily.

"Antonio? Do you mean Dr. Fernandez?" The doctor made his voice even but the curiosity within him was trying to get the better. Questions began to surface into his consciousness and the words were at the tip of his tongue.

"Yeah, that sick bastard. He was feeding me stories that Feliciano was not real. The hell he isn't. He comes to visit me as often as he could. That sci-fi story of his is even full of more bullshit. He must be more nuts than me and that's why I think he was moved away." Lovino then looked into the eyes of Arthur.

Arthur murmured a reply, "I see…"

"No you don't." The hazel eyes of the patient were challenging the doctor's statement.

The Englishman was about to give a retort but there was a knock came on the door and an orderly came in. It was Gilbert Beilschmidt.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but time's up Kirkland. Your session ended up thirty minutes ago. The boss wants to see you." The orderly said. After his report, he stayed rooted on his spot and it was a message to Arthur that he had to go **now.**

"Well then Lovino, I'll be going. See you again tomorrow." Arthur said with professionalism and exited the room.

The moment Arthur had walked out of the door Gilbert had also walked away from the room.


	4. Chapter 4

_A Peculiar Sense of Taste_

The walk from the second floor to the first floor offices felt like a long travel. Arthur Kirkland had never felt this kind of uneasiness since his defense for his thesis back in undergraduate, pre-med. To think that the event was several years ago, for something similar to resurface what might lie ahead must be something he could not…

The doctor heaves a sigh. His thoughts were becoming jumbled and this was an indication that he was not thinking clearly. His _rationale _was being clouded by his own curiosity. For now, he had to content his curiosity by letting it sit idly at the back of his mind. Its satiation can be done later.

Whatever it was that Dr. Oxenstierna wanted to talk about it must be important since someone was urgently sent to his whereabouts.

Once he was in front of the door of Dr. Oxenstierna's office, he knocked once and then entered the place. The doctor did not beat around the bush. "Dr. Kirkland… I had not received your weekly report that was due three days ago."

"AH!" Arthur's face reddened at the mishap; it was such an embarrassment to forget to something so vital.

Every week, the psychiatrists in the Behavioral Unit had to do status reports about their patient's activity or activities during that time span. It was similar to the charts that the doctors do in other hospitals. By the end of every month, the psychiatrists would then make a monthly summary. This allowed comparison if the patient has made some form progress: if the patient is heading for recovery from the illness or if the patient has digressed further into his or her illness. If the patient did not show any changes, it was a little bit frustrating. If there is no change, no movement away or towards the disorder, it would be difficult to tell if the treatment was working or not.

"I deeply apologize, sir. I got carried away with transcribing the previous notes of Dr. Fernandez." Arthur said, avoiding any eye contact. His face was slightly tinged with redness because of how the mishap made his boss feel… worried?

"I see. That would have been my job so that the transition would have been easier on you. There's no need to apologize Dr. Kirkland. The fault was on my part." The taller man said. "But please do submit last week's report as soon as possible time."

"Yes sir." Arthur affirmed the command and then left the room.

For the day, he was not bound to meet anyone else, so the Briton headed to his office and allowed his thoughts to invade his mind unfiltered.

'_… So, those notes were not yet read by anyone?_'

'_Does this mean that Dr. Oxenstierna does not know about the true nature of Lovino?_'

'_Or am I being played at by this Dr. Fernandez?_'

'_Lovino is definitely not reliable but…_'

'_Is there anyone I can talk this with?_'

Arthur sat on his executive chair which was upholstered with leather and felt comfortable upon contact. His back was fully rested and his eyes closed as he reeled through his memories during his first arrival. Nothing peculiar had stood out that day.

For now, he would write everything that had just happened in a separate journal. Everything was too speculative and there was no approach of proving that what Dr. Fernandez had written was true. Maybe the story that he had fed to Lovino was something he had thought of at the spur of the moment, to reinforce Lovino into something.

'_But why reinforce Lovino?_'

'_What is to reinforce?_'

The cold was slowly ebbing away when March had arrived.

For the past three months, Feliciano had not resurfaced. However, Lovino always claimed that he had received a letter from his brother during the days that he could not visit.

Arthur had analyzed the letters and the handwritings were totally different from another; this means that there was no semblance between Lovino's handwriting from Feliciano's handwriting.

'_Lovino does exhibit similar symptoms of DID, dissociative identity disorder._'

'_The problem is that, I cannot yet discount the idea that this person, patient might really be a scientific experiment. He could be a living proof of the advancement of technology._'

The Brit's mind then began to compare, once again, Lovino's case and the previous case that he had been assigned to. The only difference was that, there was an exact diagnosis of the mental disorder. _That patient_ **had** DID, dissociative personality disorder or more popularly known as multiple personality disorder.

A prognosis was difficult to make since DID patients were a case to case basis. There were those who were able to _function _back to society while there were those who remained forever within the confines of the mental institution that they had been admitted to.

Going back to the profile of the patient that Arthur first handled, the name of the patient was _Francis Bonnefoy, _a Frenchman in his mid-twenties_. _The man other two known personalities or alters. One was Alfred F. Jones, a supposedly American pilot of the US Air Force and Mathieu Williams, a supposed Canadian who owned a pet polar bear that was named Kumajirou.

What was peculiar about the case was the names of the alters. Most DID patients name their alters after the original personality. However Francis did not name his alter as such. There was not even the slightest likeness of the personalities from another.

During Arthur's time with _that patient, _it was Francis whom he had always interacted with.

Any sort of attachment was forbidden between doctor and patient. The more so if the patient was mentally unstable.

This ticked the Brit the most.

During his time as an intern, the moments that he had spent with Francis had allowed him to create something akin to friendship but the bond and connection was stronger than that. There some form of mutual reciprocity with their relationship.

The patient talked like every other human being. His sentences were coherent; he could switch easily between English and French when speaking.

Most of the topics he spoke were sensible.

The constant topic of the conversation was about the man's _brothers _who were in the United States and Canada.

"_You see, after my mother's failed first marriage, he married an American man. I have a younger brother who is working at the US Air Force. However, Alfred's dad, who was also part of the military, died in during a mission in Afghanistan._"

"_My mother remarried for the third time, to a French-Canadian liqueur connoisseur living in Vancouver. My younger brother, Mathieu, lives with them._"

After the first month of the internship, the topics had then shifted to abstractions. Francis would then ask Arthur about his religious views, political views and whatever the patient could then think of.

_ "Bloody frog! Don't ask me stupid questions."_

_ "Mon cher, they are not stupid. I was asking you what you think about same-sex marriage…"_

By the sixth month, Francis had begun overtly flirting with Arthur. The other workers at that mental hospital would then tease the two together. Even some of the patients would follow suit.

"_If you kiss me on the lips, I promise that I will obey your commands, Doctor._"

_Arthur had to push away the face that was only a few inches away from his. Instead of kissing the lips, he decided to give each cheek a peck._

_ The act had silenced Francis and although it was not as his terms said (a kiss on the lips) he did blindly obey Arthur's instructions._

The problem was that, the doctor was beginning to feel the attractive pull towards the patient who may one day change into someone completely different. This is where the problem lies.

Just as the psychiatrist predicted, Francis had been lapsing into his other alters. During the last months of Arthur's internship, it was _Mathieu _who had been dominantly present. The doctor then asked whether Mathieu knew who Francis was.

_"Francis? My older brother's name is Francis and he currently living in France. Despite the distance, he always sends me letter. The last letter that he sent me had said that he had finally found someone whom he wanted to truly start a relationship with."_

_ "Relationship?" _

_ "Yes. I think that what my older brother wanted to say that he has fallen in love. Despite his melodramatic actions, he is quite obstinate when it comes to expressing his true feelings in writing."_

_ "I see…" Arthur tried to hide the blush that was about to color his cheeks into a passionate color._

Mathieu would then talk about Alfred sometimes though he was mostly complaining about why his other brother rarely spoke to him. There had been no _proof_ of _Alfred's existence_ except when he would be mentioned by both _Francis and Mathieu._

Arthur Kirkland had tried to contain his emotions about _Francis Bonnefoy. _He had rationalized with himself that whatever it was that he had felt might just have been a childish crush. Although he would never admit it openly, _Francis_ was a very good looking man. His silky hair had always been tied by a ribbon; the color would either be white, red or blue. The man demanded his own wardrobe, so it was very easy to distinguish him from the other patients who wore the standard hospital apparels. He still had the identification bracelet attached on his wrist for safety precautions.

The point about his clothing was that it had outlined his body's frame. Even though he had been in the hospital for the past years, he had maintained the tone of his body.

If by chance Arthur Kirkland was just _Arthur Kirkland_ and Francis Bonnefoy was another human being in the society of _Homo sapien sapiens, _the different circumstance of their encounter might have had allowed them to explore what it was between them.

Unfortunately, that was only hypothetical. The psychiatrist shrugs away the thoughts.

Two weeks before the end of his internship, _Mathieu _was being replaced by _Alfred._ The man really talked like he was part of the army. He even elaborately explained the details about his missions and the aircraft he was piloting.

The patients who heard about his stories were impressed and listened deeply.

Even Arthur had _almost_ believed him.

"_Oh, you're the dude that Franny had been going gaga over…_"

_The Brit had raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of manner in speaking. Francis and Mathieu may not have been very formal but there was still some edge of formality within the tone of their voice. However Alfred was definitely different._

_ "Mathieu has been saying that Franny's letters are always filled about you."_

_ "You talk to Mathieu?"_

_ "No, silly. I cannot do that. Protocol and all that shit. But the letters that Mathieu sent me said that Franny's got a crush. I think that it may not be crush anymore but whatever. I just couldn't reply to his letters. Though when I have calling privileges, I do call Mat up."_

When Arthur had left the place, he had also lost contact with the patient. In retrospect, the Brit could not say whether it was good or bad. However, the experience was something that he had learned from.

_The greatest lesson was that never to create a deep emotional bond with a patient. _

By summer, Dr. Arthur Kirkland was hopeful about Lovino Vargas' case. As a psychiatrist, he was happy that the patient was responding to the medicine.

Sometimes, the inner workings of the universe could be cruel because one day, after taking one of his routine medicines, he had a violent outburst.


	5. Chapter 5

_A Bilious Taste_

The orderly who were in-charge of Lovino that day were in a panic. They were doing their best to contain the outbursts but the patient was recklessly flailing his body. Gilbert, who was the nearest male orderly had snatched up the Italian patient and had him sedated. It was a struggle but the influence of the medicine was slowly sinking into the patient and he fell limp into the hands of Gilbert.

Gently, the man placed the still body on the bed. For the past months, Gilbert had seen the pattern; every time when he had to supervise the giving out of the _stronger medicine _for the patient, there was always a violent outburst.

When order was slowly returning, the orderly slowly, Gilbert made his way outside of the building. His current absence would not matter; there were enough personnel for the current shift.

Instead of heading to the lounge, the silver-haired man went outside of the building, to the rose garden. Normally, there was rarely anyone at the place. The most frequent visitor of the place was the gardener; patients could only visit it if it was part of their regimen to go outside.

Sometimes, there was an art class held here for the patients but with most of them having violent fits, it was not a good idea.

Gilbert did not expect that he would find company at the place.

Dr. Kirkland was at the garden, watching the flowers. Both men exchanged short greetings; the simple acknowledgment was a sign of respect for each other.

At first, the orderly was wary of the English doctor. Right off the bat, the psychiatrist was assigned to _Lovino Vargas_, considered as one of the most dangerous patients. The redundancy of the statement _most dangerous_ could not be emphasized more; however as the months went by, Gilbert had noticed the sincerity of how the psychiatrist was trying his best to _fix _the patient.

"Gilbert, I have something to ask."

"Sure, my answer will totally be awesome you will be blown away by it."

Gilbert watched how tensed the psychiatrist was. The Englishman's lips were pursed to a line before taking a deep breath then speaking. "Who is Feliciano Vargas?"

The orderly was surprised with the question but he was able to contain it before giving out an answer. He sensed that there was something wrong or something that the man beside him was… heading to something, somewhere with the kind of questioning he had. Gilbert then decided to head for the _obvious _and _factual _reply.

"He is your patient's brother. Are you that irresponsible that you don't know your patient's only relative?" The man huffed, trying to redirect away the topic.

However, Gilbert was more thrown off with the next question from Dr. Kirkland. "Then who is Dr. Antonio Fernandez Carriedo?"

"That man was the psychiatrist before you that handled Lovino's case." Again, Gilbert opted for the safer reply.

"Was that all that there was?" The psychiatrist's questioning gaze pierced through Gilbert's eyes. The orderly uncomfortably sifted his stance and kept his silence. "…"

_Dangerous, this is dangerous._

Alarm bells were tolling inside the mind of the silver-haired man. It was apparent that Dr. Kirkland was able to get some sort of information and he was seeking for validation of this information. Seeing that the psychiatrist would not back down from the conversation, Gilbert said, "I don't know."

After giving his reply, he inwardly cringed. There was something he knew about the Italian but he could not, would not be willing to share it to just anyone. It was too dangerous to talk about within the boundaries of WW Hospital.

"How about… I, we have lunch during your day-off and you talk about it…" Dr. Kirkland said with finality and left Gilbert.

'_That was totally not awesome…_' The man murmured to himself. He took out a cigarette packet and took one stick. He lit it and blew out smoke. "Liz would totally kill me if she knew I still smoke…"

The conversation felt like an interrogation. Gilbert has no choice but to comply with the lunch thing because if he did not, it would raise more suspicions.

The encounter had made him smoke more than one cigarette stick. After finishing three sticks, the platinum haired man went back to the hospital. Instead of immediately going back to the station, he headed for the locker room and took a quick shower and changed into another set of uniform.

* * *

Dr. Arthur Kirkland made a bold move that day.

The Englishman was searching the notes of Dr. Antonio Fernandez Carriedo and it had finally reached a dead-end. After reading everything thoroughly one more time, he had set aside the materials and headed to Dr. Oxenstierna's office. There, the psychiatrist had asked to his boss about _Lovino Vargas. _The only notable information that was added was that it was Gilbert Beilschmidt who had brought Lovino to the hospital.

After his visit to the head psychiatrist's office, he was going to visit his patient but what he had seen was something… was a very chaotic scene. It was similar to the time when he had just arrived to the Behavioral Unit.

When the patient was fully sedated, the orderly, Gilbert Beilschmidt, had placed the unconscious man on his bed. The other patients were gawking at the scene but they were ushered back to their activities.

Arthur did not immediately approach Gilbert; instead he had waited for an opportunity for the two of them to talk together alone. However, the other man was still busy with the fiasco; the psychiatrist had then headed to the garden. Barely anyone visits the area except for the gardener perhaps.

The place was relaxing for the psychiatrist. It reminded him so much of his home back in London. As a child, he was always fascinated with flowers and along with his mother, they cultivated a rose garden. They would even make rose tea for everyone to drink.

Arthur's thoughts were interrupted when the person he was seeking for information had unceremoniously arrived. There was silence between them.

For the Englishman, he had no idea, personal information about Gilbert Beilschmidt except that he worked day-in and day-out in the hospital.

To break the silence, Arthur had then asked a question. It was a stupid question but it was a safe question. The aim was to find out how the orderly would react to the questions.

"Gilbert, I have something to ask." Arthur broke the silence.

"Sure, my answer will totally be awesome you will be blown away by it." The psychiatrist had laughed inwardly at the reply. At first, he had thought that the orderly had some hatred towards him with how he had acted during his arrival; he had not expected the response he had just gotten.

When Arthur's inner self had been calmed, he continued his questioning. "Who is Feliciano Vargas?"

There was a pause at Gilbert's end. The psychiatrist had noted how Gilbert was trying to phrase his words. "He is your patient's brother. Are you that irresponsible that you don't know your patient's only relative?"

Arthur took a short pause before he asked another question. "Then who is Dr. Antonio Fernandez Carriedo?"

"That man was the psychiatrist before you that handled Lovino's case." Arthur was unsatisfied with the reply so he added a follow-up. "Was that all that there was?"

There was no reply from Gilbert. The Englishman had then noted the defensiveness of the replies. '_Perhaps there really is something more to this case?_'

"How about… I, we have lunch during your day-off and you talk about it…" Arthur said with finality in his voice then left without receiving a reply. He was heading to the HR Department and ask for the day-offs of their workers.

One of staff was a bit wary when Arthur had arrived and asked the question. Nonetheless, he was given with the information that he had wanted. Apparently, Gilbert had all of his Sundays off but in exchange he worked from Monday to Saturday from eight in the morning until five in the afternoon.

"His wife was very adamant that Mr. Beilschmidt have the Sundays off." The staff said.

"Ah, thank you." Arthur replied and returned back the file.

The psychiatrist wondered whether it would be alright to infringe the day-off when it was meant to be spent together with the family. Arthur shrugged his thoughts. Rather than having it on the day-off maybe he could arrange dinner after work. It was a more viable solution.

With a firm resolve, Arthur headed back to the patients' ward. He was hoping to bump into Gilbert but he did not expect that Lovino would already be up and about already.

Or it was supposed to be _Lovino_. Instead, the persona in front was _Feliciano_.

The young man had a very frantic expression. His eyes filled with distress.

"You're Dr. Kirkland right? Right? _Mi Fratello…_ Please help my brother… Lovino, he, he would not wake-up anymore. No matter what I say, he would not reply… please, please…"

Arthur could not give a reply. One of the orderlies saw the scene and gave the patient another sedative.

"Are you alright Doctor?" The orderly asked.

"Yes… I am fine." The psychiatrist replied as if he was in auto-pilot. "Please page me the moment he regains consciousness."

The orderly nodded and called for another person to help him carry the unconscious body back to his room.

The day was becoming more and more complicated. The case of _Lovino Vargas_ might prove to be far more problematic than it appeared to be. Or is it?

Arthur felt that his head was about to split into half if he continued to dwell with his thoughts. For that moment, he went back to his office and made himself tea to calm his nerves. Gilbert might really hold the key to solving at least a portion of the puzzle.

* * *

_Poor little boy._

_Pitiful! May the Lord give this child His mercy._

_What a tragedy for such a young fellow._

Unfamiliar voices had plagued his mind. His thoughts were always quiet like the undisturbed surface of the lake.

As of the late, it was not like the peacefulness anymore. People began whispering to him that he did not like. Mean things that made him feel sad. Although there were times when they whispered kind words and it made him happy.

But the mean things were always spoken lately and these voices were becoming tumultuous.

The restlessness was bothering him and it was becoming unbearable.

There was only one way out and that was to shut down.


End file.
